The Quest
by Unicorne
Summary: The Little Ponies go out for a festival but never return. Applejack is left on her own to search for them. Will she ever find her friends, and what will happen along the way?
1. A Normal Day in Ponyland

Once there was a place.  
"A place?" You say.  
"Yes, a place," I say. "Once there was a place. A place of ever happiness."  
"Ever?" You ask.  
I chuckle. "Yes, ever. Enough small talk, and let me finish the story."  
"Oh......alright," You say.  
Once there was a place. A place of ever happiness. And this place was called Ponyland.  
Now, forgive me for telling the story all weird-like, as I am just writing what comes from my mind.  
In this place called Ponyland, there was a castle. Pink, it was. And in this castle dwelled a magical, wonderful, colorful race: My Little Ponies. There were ever so many of them, pegasus ponies, unicorns and earthlings. All lived together in this magical castle, called Dream Castle, in this wonderful place, called Ponyland.  
And so, our story begins here.  
  
* * * * * * *  
  
  
Applejack looked down at the fortune cookie with disgust. Her friend, Twilight the pink unicorn, sat across from her, looking at her in the most, well, unusual way.  
"Bother," said Applejack, "I can't get it open! Stupid thing!"  
She once more picked the cookie up with her hooves and tried to break it open. No matter how she tried, that cookie would not split.  
"Oh freak it!!" Applejack yelled in frustration. She brought her hoof down upon the cookie, breaking it open.  
Twilight stared at the broken-to-bits cookie with a bored look on her face.  
"Really, Applejack," she sighed, "you ought to be less, shall we say, impolite, the next time."  
"There won't be a next time," Applejack explained sulkily. "I hate fortune cookies."  
"Really?" Twilight asked in the same bored tone. She sighed. "What's to be done with you, Applejack? You never....oh well. What does it say?"  
"It says: 'you will be going on a quest'. Oh great. How exciting." Applejack snorted. "Like I will be going on a quest."  
"I agree," Twilight said dryly. "You? Going on a quest? I'm sorry, I can't believe it."  
"Mmmmmm..." Applejack muttered thoughtfully.  
Just then Firefly came skipping up, followed by Sundance.  
"Hi!" Firefly called to them.  
"Hi," Twilight said, getting up.  
"Princess Tiffany sent us out to remind you all of the Annual Festival tomorrow." Sundance spoke up.  
"Oh?" asked Twilight. "I forgot. Thanks for reminding me."  
"Isn't she ever going to think up a name for that Festival?" asked another pony, coming up to them. He was Wig Wam, a Big Brother pony, and rumors were going around the Brothers that he had a small crush on Applejack.  
"Let's hope she does," mused Applejack, still sitting with her head on her hoof. " 'Else we'll be calling it 'Annual Festival' forever, which won't be very fun."  
"Well, whatever it's called, it's tomorrow," stated Firefly importantly, "So you had better not forget."  
"I don't think I'll go this year," said Applejack.  
All the ponies gasped.  
"But Applejack!" cried Sundance, " they're having 'Bobbing for Apples', and you love that!"  
"I know, but I still don't think I'll go," Applejack repeated.  
"Why not?" asked Twilight.  
"Because...I don't know. I guess I've gotten bored of it."  
"Bored of it?!?!?!?" The three girl ponies gasped. Wig Wam had left by this time to spread the news.  
"Oh Applejack!" cried Sundance again, "won't you please go? Please?"  
But Applejack would clearly not give in."No. You guys go without me. I'll be fine."  
"But you'll be left all alone. Everyone's going. Are you sure you'll be fine?" asked Firefly.  
"Yes, don't worry about me. I will be fine," Applejack assured her friends.  
"Well, yes, you always find something to do, Applejack," Twilight sighed, "but as long as you stay out of trouble, it's fine with me. And, anyway, it is your choice."  
"Yes, it is," Applejack said simply, "and I want you all to leave me here and go have tons of fun."  
"Well, alright," they all sighed.  
"We'll see you tomorrow after we return from the Festival, ok? Bye, Applejack," Sundance said.  
"Bye!" Applejack called after them as they left. She sighed, and went to bed. Sleep was a good thing, she thought, and she was tired.   
  
  
  
The next morning dawned sunny and beautiful. All the little ponies were excited, and everyone was getting ready for the Annual Festival. There were balloons, booths, and noise-makers. There were picnic baskets too, as everyone packed their food to take with them. The festival was to be held outside Dream Castle, over the Yonder Hills.  
Soon, after much bustling and such-like, everything and everyone was ready.   
Applejack stood by her window with her two front hooves on the sill, and watched her friends march away.  
Sundance turned around and spotted Applejack sitting in her window, and she waved to her. Applejack waved back. As her eyes wandered over the happy crowd, she caught Wig Wam turning away. Had he been looking at her? She sighed. Oh well.  
Applejack had never heard the Brothers' rumors, and if she had she would've stormed off to Wig Wam long ago. Applejack was a very independent pony.  
As the sun climbed higher in the sky, Applejack kept herself busy by reading books and learning some history. While reading these records, Applejack recalled the time when the evil Terak and his band of Stratadons attacked, and she and Twilight, Firefly, Bowtie and their human friend, Megan, had to steal the Rainbow of Darkness, which was what gave Terak his power. She had fallen off a bridge, she remembered with disgust. Actually, she still fell off every time she tried to cross it. She had never really gotten the hang of it. Oh well, she thought to herself, at least there will be no bridge-crossing today. I wonder what time it is?  
Judging by the sun, it looked to be around 6:30 pm.  
"That's funny," Applejack mused to herself, "they're supposed to be back by now."  
She moved to her window and looked out. Nothing. No one. There was eerie silence all around. Applejack softly bit her lip as her eyes moved over the Pony landscape. Not a creature was stirring. (not even a mouse, I bet that's what you're thinking, eh? ;) )  
The sun had set by now, and Applejack decided to wait until tomorrow. Maybe the bridge collapsed and they had to take the long way, around the Yonder Hills. Maybe. 


	2. Disappearance

The next morning was the same as yesterday's, only it was silent, except for the usual birds singing. The ponies had not yet returned, and Applejack was getting restless. She paced the main hall, and grew more anxious every second.  
"What if something's happened to them?" She fretted. "What if...oh, I can't do anything by staying here. I must go look for them!"  
And so, without a word more, she left Dream Castle, and headed for the Yonder Hills.  
Soon after, Applejack came across that old bridge again, which she would have to cross, which she did not like, and, not liking it, didn't *really* want to cross it, and these thoughts just kept running through her head going on and on, rather like this sentence, until she finally decided it was time to STOP!  
Her friends were more important now. She took a deep breath, and began to walk across the old, swaying, wooden bridge. And, of course, you guessed it, she fell through and splash! She sank down, down, under the water and landed in a familiar huge, purple shell.  
"Shoop--..." The music began, but died down as soon the Sea Ponies saw who was in their bubble.  
"Oh, it's her," said a voice. The voice belonged to a pink sea pony with blue hair.  
Applejack grinned sheepishly at the sea ponies from her bubble cage.  
"So, fell off again, eh Applejack?" piped up a blue sea pony with pink hair; her name was Seawinkle.  
"Well--..." began Applejack.  
"Where were you going this time?" Wavedancer, the pink sea pony with blue hair, asked.  
"Well--..." Applejack repeated.  
"Was it someplace important?" asked Sealight, another sea pony.  
"Well--..." Applejack repeated *again*.  
"Don't you have anything else to say?" implored Seawinkle irritably.  
"Yes," Applejack snorted (as best she could). "I was just going to say: I'm looking for the other ponies. They went out for the Annual Festival and they haven't come back yet. So I'm going to look for them."  
The sea ponies had worried faces on as they looked at each other, but then Sealight spoke up, quite calmly, as though there was nothing to worry about. "When did they leave?"  
"Yesterday morning," Applejack replied.  
The sea ponies looked at eachother again. And then Wavedancer said, "I suppose we ought to bring you back up again."  
And so they did. And when they had brought Applejack up to the surface and delivered her safely on the other bank, they threw her the tiny, magic, purple shell that would summon the Sea Ponies if one threw it in the water.  
Applejack thanked them, and just as she was beginning to leave, she turned back to the sea ponies. "You know," she said, "you really ought to get another song. That one's getting old."  
"We would," Wavedancer replied, "but sea ponies do not write songs. That one was written by Shy (*wink* Sel's character)."  
"Before she fell in love with Flash," snorted Seawinkle, disdainfully.  
"Alright then, Seawinkle," broke in Sealight, "not now. Goodbye, AJ!"  
The two others bade her goodbye and good luck as well, and with their final "shoop-bee-doosh, shoop-shoop-bee-doosh", dove beneath the river, and disappeared into its watery keep, leaving Applejack alone to finish her quest.  
  
Applejack stood on the bank for a little while longer. She just stood there, and thought. There's nothing to do now, she thought, but to keep on going. She looked over her shoulder at the Yonder Hills not too far away, and with one last sigh, trotted off toward them.  
  
Toward high noon, she had just crossed a little brook, and, the day being quite lovely and beautiful, she wasn't really paying attention to the going-ons around her. Thus, you can imagine her surprise when something pounced on her out of nowhere. One minute she was walking peacefully and quietly,   
minding her own business, and the next, she was lying on the ground staring up into the triumphant-looking face of a male unicorn. He grinned at her, got up, and let her stand.   
He still had not said anything when she had finally collected her wits; he was still sitting there with the same triumphant grin on his face.  
"Hello," Applejack managed to choke out, finally.  
"Hi!" He grinned.  
"Uh...Who are you?" Applejack asked.  
"My name's Pouncer!" He was still grinning.  
Applejack heard the clip-clopping of hooves behind her, and turned around. There she saw another male unicorn pony walking toward them.   
This one had glittering, gold glasses on his muzzle.  
"Hello," he said as he came up to Applejack. "I'm Starwatcher, Pouncer's friend. I apologise for his behavior..."  
"Oh, it's ok. I'm Applejack. Nice to meet you." She smiled at the two.  
"What are you doing? And where are you going?" Pouncer asked.  
"Uh...," Applejack replied. "I really don't know where I'm going... I'm looking for my friends, who disappeared yestderday...So I'm going to look for them..."  
"Oh..." Pouncer looked a little confused.  
"Do you wanna come with me?" Applejack asked brightly.  
"Sure!" they both said.  
"Great!" Applejack smiled. Having these two along would be fun, she thought, and it was always handy to have at least one unicorn with you. They were good luck, as Fizzy   
would put it. 


End file.
